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The critical importance of the Single Market for Europe’s global trade performance
The Single Market just turned 30. It is one of the EU’s greatest achievements and the success of the Single Market is built on the fundamental economic logic that binds EU Member States together....
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European strategic autonomy – Aim or bane for our generation?
In September 2020, European Council President Charles Michel delivered a long speech on Europe’s “strategic autonomy, sovereignty, and power”. He concluded that “whichever word you use”, it...
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European strategic autonomy – What role for Europe’s fragmented single market?
30 years after the establishment of the European Single Market, regulatory convergence reversed or came to a halt in the EU. This lack of integration is the expression of a “Single Market...
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The L’Oréal principle: How the EU leverages its single market for its trade policy objectives
Products of the skincare company L’Oréal have been marketed over the years using the self-reassuring tag line “because you’re worth it”. The EU has recently launched a new line of trade...
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The Role of Intellectual Property for the Single Market and SMEs
There is an intimate relation between the single market and intellectual property (IP) in that they both rely fundamentally on economies of scale. One of the advantages of the single market is that...
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‘Urgent Need to Review the Mobility Package 1 proposals’ says EU transport sector
The European Parliament Transport Committee continues working on the Mobility Package 1 despite the ongoing coronavirus crisis that led to confinement measures introduced by many European...
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A Global Agreement on Medical Equipment and Supplies to fight COVID-19
The trade answer to the coronavirus crisis has been a mix of openness and protectionism. Countries have lowered import duties (examples here, here, and here), imposed export restrictions (here and...
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Call on European Parliament: Stop Freight Cabotage Restrictions and Save the Single Market
60 kilometres of traffic jams on the border between Poland and Germany. 20 hours waiting time due to vehicle inspections. Because of border controls, international freight traffic between Western and...
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A European industrial policy for services: the Single Market
Industrial policy is back on the European agenda. Inside the European Commission headquarters, policy makers are fiercely discussing the instruments, sectors, and ways of funding for a new European...
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NGO Lobbying – How to Ensure Accountability and Transparency at the EU Level
On January 22, the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies and ECIPE hosted a seminar on the accountability and transparency of the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) funded by the EU. The...